White Sox's Matt Davidson blasts 3 homers in opener

KANSAS CITY, Mo. --Matt Davidson said that until he joined them in the record book on Thursday, he had never heard of George Bell, Tuffy Rhodes or Dmitri Young.

"I'll definitely look them up, though,'' said Davidson, the designated hitter for the Chicago White Sox.

Davidson joined the others as the only players to hit three home runs in an Opening Day game. His teammates matched his total as the White Sox hit six in all in a 14-7 win over the Kansas City Royals.

"A special day in everybody's book,'' White Sox manager Rick Renteria said. "Three homers, some great at-bats. It's a good start. It's a long season. Guys aren't going to have days like that every single day, but that's a special moment for him today.''

Davidson hit solo home runs in the fourth and fifth innings and then a three-run shot in the eighth. It was his first three-home run game at any level, but he said he was most impressed with the patience he showed by taking a walk in the seventh inning, after hitting his first two homers.

"When I start thinking (home run), you don't get the results you want,'' he said. "Three home runs is awesome, but the main goal is kind of like that walk I had. You hit two home runs and you could try to get big again. If I could keep those walks up ... you're going to hit balls in the zone harder than balls out of the zone.''

Davidson hit 26 home runs for the White Sox in 2017, his first full major league season.

"When you're hitting the ball like that, everything's in sync,'' Renteria said. "Your timing's in place, you're seeing everything well, you're putting the barrel to the baseball. He's not trying to do too much. He's just taking advantage of the strength that he has and the ability to generate bat speed. If it's in the zone and he can handle that and manage it, he's got a chance to put it in the seats.''

The Royals were also the victim in two other three-home run games on Opening Day. Toronto's Bell in 1988 and Detroit's Young in 2005 went deep three times against Kansas City.

Rhodes of the Cubs also had three home runs in the opener in 1994 against the New York Mets.

Chicago's six homers tied the MLB record for the most homers on Opening Day, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Mets hit six on April 4, 1988 -- including two each by Darryl Strawberry and Kevin McReynolds.

Davidson said he didn't bother trying to retrieve any of his historic home run balls. After all, he said, he's hit home runs before.

"Hopefully, more to come,'' Davidson said.

Davidson is the first White Sox player with a three-homer game since Dan Johnson on Oct. 3, 2012, at the Cleveland Indians. It was the team's last game of the 2012 campaign.

Information from ESPN's Stats and Information was used in this report.